Welcome!

The Parkdale Community Garden is an interactive learning garden. Located in East Aurora, NY on the grounds of Parkdale Elementary. This site is full of resources for school gardens, community gardens and home gardens. Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Garden Party Tuesday June 22nd


Rain or Shine 6-8pm. The Community is welcome to tour the Parkdale Community Garden and sign up for a week of summer maintenance. In case of rain please come into the school through the new entrance and there will be signs leading you to the Party. Refreshments and goodies will be available (donations appreciated). School Curriculum will be on display so you can see how teachers can use the Garden in their lesson plans. Meet our local business supporters and our donors.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Mrs. McAtee's Class Rules

Mrs. McAtee's morning class came to the garden with a very cool gardening tool; their rulers. We used the width of the rulers to make straight row indentations for the seeds we planted. We lightly pressed the rulers into the soil since the carrot, beet and swiss chard seeds we sowed only need to be planted 1/8"-1/4" into the soil. Then we used the rulers to measure how far apart the rows should be. We planted a rows of Red Core Chantenay Carrots, Dragon Carrots, Yellowstone Carrots and Chioggia Beets. Then we planted rows of Multi Color Swiss Chard seeds close between the carrot rows so the swiss chard would shade the carrots as they grew. The swiss chard will be ready to harvest as the carrots are getting bigger and then leave room for the carrots to grow. Mrs. McAttee's class- you rule!

Mrs. Evans' class planting cherry tomatoes


Mrs. Evans' class joined us in the garden to plant cherry tomatoes of all different varieties (see sidebar for varieties). The students did a stellar job! The students crushed egg shells in their hands and dropped them in the holes we dug for the tomato plants. The egg shells will provide extra calcium the tomato plants need. The students then seeded the same bed with basil and dill seeds. The basil and dill will confuse the bugs that want to eat the tomato plants with their pungent smells. Plus tomatoes and basil go really nicely together in dishes.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Mrs. McDonald's 1st Grade Class Made Cucumber Rainbows in the Garden

Mrs. McDonald's class learned the trick to growing lettuces all summer long. With a little help from its friend cucumber, lettuces can grow under the shade of the cucumber plant when you make a rainbow shaped support with chicken wire for the cucumber plant to trellis onto. The students planted cucumber plants and cucumber seeds, this way there are cucumbers all summer long and not all at once. They planted the small lettuce seeds with an easy seed sower (pictured above). They also planted seeds of melons in the bed directly behind the cucumber/lettuce bed. They sprinkled nasturtium flower seeds along the edges of the two beds. Nasturtiums have been shown to repel ground beetles and squash bugs, the flowers also act as a living mulch to keep down weeds.

Mr. Downs' 2nd Grade Class in the Garden

Mr. Downs' 2nd Grade class did a fantastic job in the garden this week. We talked about the importance of diversity in the vegetable garden. They planted six tomato plants and then planted the seeds of good companion plants as well. All around the tomato plants they seeded the edible flower borage (pictured above) and the herb basil. The borage flower is useful because it attracts pollinators to the tomato plants. The basil is important because its aromatic oils may confuse the pest tomato hornworms. When in the garden brush up against the basil or pick leaves to release the aromatic oils. The students were very helpful in tidying up the garden as well; they weeded the beds, straightened the gravel pathways and started edging the perimeter beds. What a crew!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Lead Free Hoses

If you are considering purchasing a new hose this Spring consider this, many hoses are made of polyvinyl chloride, which uses lead as a stabilizer. Lead leaches into the water flow at 10 to 100 times the allowable EPA levels for drinking water. Phthalate ester, an industrial chemical that you taste, is also a health concern. Look for a lead-free, antimicrobial, rubber (preferable over plastic) hose. With any hose, flush by allowing water to run for a minute or more to let fresh water reach the hose end. The Parkdale Community Garden purchased two lead-free garden hoses from Reboy Supply Inc. in Elma.

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Charitable Support Grows

The Parkdale Community Garden is funded through the East Aurora Educational Foundation's Leadership Grant program and the Priscilla Gleed Memorial Fund. Miss Gleed was a lifelong resident of East Aurora and a teacher in the East Aurora Union Free School District for 41 years. Her life was devoted to charitable activities in support of children, the elderly, wildlife and community in general.

Art adds pizazz to garden




Our incredibly talented art teachers have added pizazz to our garden and garden room. With the help of the 3rd graders Mrs. White decorated one of the two rain barrels that was donated to us by the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper. Mrs. Cotton made a beautiful mural for our Garden Room.

Welcome to the Parkdale Community Garden


This spring over thirty parent and community volunteers built the Parkdale Community Garden. We are about to start planting this week. Stay tuned for the list of seeds we are using.